I have multiple personalities. No, I’m not schizophrenic but I do have alter egos. During the day, I live and breathe cloud computing with my job as Technology Evangelist at GoGrid, a cloud infrastructure provider. And then the rest of my hours when I’m awake, I’m a dad, husband and technologist, trying to figure out how it all fits together without busting at the seams. This site, HighTechDad.com, represents many years of trying to figure out how technology integrates into the family, what works, what doesn’t, what to look out for and how to make sense of it all.

Believe it or not, what we think of cloud computing now has been around for a long time – well before the term was coined. The most common and prevalent form of cloud computing is that of cloud applications. These have had different names: software as a service (SaaS) or even Application Service Provider (ASP), which is what SaaS evolved into. But even nowadays, we use cloud applications without giving them second thought. These are tried and true forms – think hosted email services, photo sharing sites or even online banking. When you use these services, you are using cloud-based (or server farm) applications specifically designed to provide a single activity or function.

But why are consumer clouds important, and especially, why are they important for businesses and corporations? I would pose this hypothesis. People chose to use the things that they are comfortable with. Unless you are a natural risk-taker, most likely pursuing something completely new is scary. Would you try something new in your work environment without knowing about it? You are putting your job at risk if you do potentially. But let’s say you have been using a particular technology or service at home, with your family, or personally. Over time, you become comfortable and confident in it. And once you have done your due diligence personally, it is much easier, and more feasible to bring into your work environment.

Michael Sheehan

"HighTechDad"

Avid technologist, content marketer, blogger, social media pundit (@HighTechDad on Twitter), writer, loving husband and father of 3 beautiful girls living in the San Francisco Bay Area. I write about technology, consumer electronics, cloud computing, gadgets, software, hardware, parenting "hacks," and other tips & tricks. I'm a fan of all technology that is new, exciting and valuable.

I work at Intel as a Journalist for Intel Free Press and am a Social Media Strategist there as well. All of content on this site is my opinion and not of any employer or company unless otherwise noted. See my About page for more details.